Vibrating and massaging device



A4315H 9 1940 c. E. HEGSTROM 2,198,872

VIBRATING AND MVASSAGING DEVICE Filed July 29, 1959 2 sheet' 1 Ila. l0 I00. [4-

I)? Ventor CON/dd Hegstlom April 1940- c. E. HEGSTROM r 2,198,872 VIBRAIING ANb MASSAGING DEVICE Filed July 29, 1939 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Inventor Conrad 5 He sfrom Patented Apr. 30, 1940 v UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE VIBRATING AND MASSAGING DEVICE 1 Conrad E. Hegstrom, Chicago, Ill. Application July 29, 1939, Serial No. 287,338

4 Claims.

This invention is directed to a vibrating and massaging device of novel construction, and the novel features thereof including yieldable and resilient massaging pads which function in a 5 novel and improved manner.

Massaging devices of the general construction heretofore known and as used in gymnasiums, health sanitariums and by the barber and massaging professions have been of the portable .0 -type invariably including a substantially cylin-' drical housing ranging usually about 2 /2 inches in diameter and approximately 1 /2 inches in depth, one end of the conventional housing having a removable cover or can to provide access 5 thereinto. In these presently known conventional devices a cam or eccentric is mounted for rotation within said housing and upon the end of a flexible shaft, the other end of the flexible shaft being driven by suitable electric motor. These presently known conventional devices also have been provided with a projecting bracket of rela-v tively large area, with relatively soft sponge ru ber pad secured to the bracket, the centrifugal rotating action of the cam imparting principally a rotating action or movement up and down to the housing or head and its attached hard rubber pad, such rotating movement of the pad constituting a so called vibration being substantially ment in a direction to and from the body being massaged, radially or perpendicularly to the body being massaged.

It is an important object of my invention to i provide a massaging machine of improved construction, particularly in the provision of a construction having in combination. an elongated barrel shape or housing shape to be conveniently gripped and held by a persons hand having angular projecting brackets of relatively restricted 0 .area, and a pair of spaced apart resilient rubber pads of an area substantially greater than the mounting portion of the brackets to which they are respectively secured whereby the rotating movement of'the grippable head will cause the opposite ends. of therespective rubber pads to secured to each of said mounting bracketsso as toprovide vibratory and flexing opposite "ends of the pad whichpro-ject on opposite sides of the mounting bracketsand whichimpart an additional and individual patting and slapping action by the flexing movement thereof in an arcuate path; r

A further object of my invention is the provision and combination with a portable grippable massaging head fora massaging device adapted to be vibrated through a cam and flexible cable, of a body-contact bead of suitable resilient material and of substantially greater size than conventional pads wherein proportionately v large areas adjacent to the opposite ends of the pad are free to set up an arcuate flexing and vibrating 2d action independently of the normal movements of the head and integral brackets'cr'eated by the rotating cam,-which individual and independent arcuate movements of the end areas ofsaidresilient pads creates a'desirable patting and vibrating action upon thebody flesh.

A further object of my invention isthe provision of flexing and resilient pads having the features last above described in combination with grippable metal head for massaging device of substantially bulb-like construction. and formed of separable parts to permit access thereintoand having integral brackets. extending angularly to i mount the resilient vibrating'pads in non-parallel planes. 7

Other and further objects of my invention will be apparentfrom the following description and claims. I

An illustration of this invention in a preferred form is described in the following:

Fig. 1 is a side elevational view of an eccentric head or housing of a massaging device showing only a fragment of the flexible shaft covering and showing one of the resilient pads and brackets in vertical cross section. i

Fig. 2 is a side elevational view of the end of the vibrating cam head of my construction.

Fig. 3 is a top plan view'of one of the resilient pads having the end bail members molded therein and projecting therefrom.

Fig. 4 is a vertical cross sectional view taken along line 4-4 of Fig. 3 of my resilient vibratory pad.

Fig. 5 is a side elevational View illustrating the application of my device to the foot.

Referring to the drawings, reference numeral l designates a substantially bell or dome shaped main portion of a grippable housing or head which is provided with circumferential integral reinforcing bead 16a, and which is provided with an inner journalling sleeve ltc having an aperture Hlb at its reduced end. The stub shaft ll secured on the end of flexible cable I2 is journaled in the aperture Nib of the apertured journalling sleeve lfic of grippable housing portion l0. Said stub shaft H is provided with a cir cumferential groove (no-t shown). A metal collar Ila surroundsjournalling sleeve I00 and has "I. in aconventional manner (not shown) sp-ringably mounted therein a metal ball Hb which releasably engages the circumferential groove on the stub shaft, thereby permitting said stub shaft to be quickly connectedor disconnected. The opposite end of said flexible cable is rotatably connected to a suitable electric motor Numeral l3 designates a flexible cover or guard surrounding the flexible cable.

llc designates the eccentric cam secured on the end of stub shaft H and detachably secured 30617118113011 by set screw I id.

The opening of the reinforced grippable housing orhead If! is provided with suitable female threads M, as illustrated in Fig. 1 and numeral l5.designates a bell-shaped or dome-like metal cap which forms the remaining portion of the the housing head portion In whenever access thereinto is desired for purposes of adjustment and the like. The metal housing cap I is provided with an inwardly extending socket ll at 5:.2its end which is preferably of hexagonal shape to permit use of a suitable wrench for removal or mounting of said cap portion l5.

Formed integral with the head housing portion II) are a pair of spaced apart metal arms or -r1brackets i8 and I9 which extend angularly and away from the housing of the massaging head, and .which are formed with integral slightly curved metal feet "3a and [90. respectively. The metal feet Illa and Illa are formed with outwardly ;;fa.cing slightly curved surfaces which are in nonparallel planes, though varying but slightly from a common plane substantially as illustrated in Fig. '1.

Each of the respective integral feet 18a and I9a -.are of relatively restricted area and are provided with a pair of spaced apart apertures 20 which receive the projecting portions of suitable internally threaded bushings 25 which bushings are embedded and secured in the resilient pads of .the construction-herein described and in correspondingly spaced apart bushings.

Referencenumeral 2! designates the so-called vibrating pads which are preferably molded of relatively soft .rubber though of a suflicient stiff- ;ness and body to snap quickly when bent or flexed. The pads 2i are preferably of rectangular longitudinal cross section as illustrated in Fig. 2 and of substantially. rectangular horizontal cross section as indicated in Fig. 3. Each of the ,..;;rubber pads 2i have molded therein a pair of spaced apart internally threaded sleeves or bushings 25 whose upper ends project a short distance above said pads and whose lower ends are formed with a suitable annular flange to anchor the same in the pad against withdrawal when in use. Each of the pads 2| are of a size in sufficient area to include oppositely projecting end portions 2i a and 2H) which end portions project beyond the edges of the respective feet 18 and 19a to provide for the herein described individual flexing, vibrating and patting action. Each of the pads 2| are removably mounted to the said metal feet by means of suitable screws 22 whose threads engage the internal threads of the bushings 25.

When the pads 2! are secured to the curved or arcuate feet lBa and [9a respectively, the pads will be slightly arched and curved as the screws are tightened up. This is desired in order that the normal contacting base of the pads more nearly conforms tocurvatures of the body.

Each of the yieldable and resilient vibrating means for the releasable mounting of springs 26,

illustrated in side elevation only in Fig. 5.

. The plurality of springs 26 may be placed over each foot, so that the pads contact either the bottom or top of the foot, or may. be mounted on the back of the hand to transfer the vibratory slapping movement through the operators hand with modified force to the body surface being massaged.

,It is also desirable and important that the projecting portion of the respective bails or anchoring members 23 and 24 be substantially spaced from the working or contact surface of the respective pads 21 in order to avoid any contact of such projecting ends with the flesh when the vibrating device is in action. For this reason,

I find it preferable to mold and anchor the said bails 23 and 24 'SO that the same project ad- Jacent to the juncture of the end surface and the back surface of each pad substantially as transmitted to the hand and thereby indirectly to the scalp to effect a more mild and less vigorous vibration to the body parts, though of ample vibration and movement to satisfactorily massage and to promote circulation.

The resilient pads 2| are made of high grade flexible rubber, and preferably not of a sponge rubber as is the case of ordinary conventional pads. The cross section and dimension of the area is such that the projecting and free end portions 2Ia. and 2H) of the pads 25 will not follow the normal movements of the head created by the eccentric, but such end portions, because of the desirable flexibility of the rubber and the cross section of the area will set up pronounced and. vigorous up and down movements in arcuate paths, as are only minutely illustrated by the dotted line positions of Fig. 4. The vibrating and slapping action of the free ends 2la and Zlb of the respective pads 2| may also bedescribed as similar to the free end of a flexible Whip, the handle of which was moved in a-substantially uniform up and down or back and forthpath.

This individual and additional vibrating and slapping action of the free ends Zia and Nb is a very desirable one in massaging and may also be termed as slapping and impact action against the flesh which is similar to that of a genuine Swedish massage, and these additional slapping and impact movements and action are attained only by use of my construction of pads substantially as described and are not attainable by presently known and conventional massaging devices wherein such pads as are used follow only the normal movements of the vibrating head as actually caused by the rotating eccentric.

My structural feature utilizes angular feet of relatively small area formed integral with the grippable head and in non-parallel curved planes for the purpose of mounting each pair of pads in slightly angular position with respect to each other so that the contact surface of the pads conforms to curvatures of the body. A further important feature is the provisio of an elongated bulb-shaped streamlined housing of restricted diameter which forms a convenient handle and is conveniently gripped and held by the operator during the massaging operations. This novel eccentric housing construction forms the grippable means and because of the forwardly projecting cap l5 permits the operator, to apply varying degrees of pressure to either one or the other of the two respective pads, and this advantage and function is particularly desirable Where the operator is temporarily using only'the .outer or forward pad 2| on body areas such as the neck, the operator needing only to shift his grip or apply pressure to the cap end of the eccentric housing. I

Various changes may be made in the embodiment of the invention herein specifically described without departing from or sacrificing any of the advantages of the invention or any features thereof, and nothing herein shall be construed as limitations upon the invention, its concept or structural embodimentas to the whole or any part thereof.

I claim as my invention: 1. In a portably grippable vibrating head adapted to be driven bya rotating flexible shaft;

an elongated bulb-shaped housing consisting of a main portion connected with said flexible shaft for rotating said eccentric cam; said housing forming a convenient grippable handle; a pair of angular oppositely extending brackets formed integral with one of said housing sections and having apertures therein, the ends of said brackets being slightly arcuate and non-parallel; a pair of rubber-like pads secured to said arcuate bracket surfaces respectively, and integral pad portions at the ends of each of said pads extending substantially beyond each of said brackets respectively and adapted to vibrate to create a slapping or pounding action opposite to the normal vibrating movements of the intermediate portion of said pads.

2. In a 'portably grippable vibrating head adapted to be driven by a rotating flexible shaft; an elongated bulb-shaped housing consisting of a main portion connected with, said flexible shaft and a removable dome-like cap portion, said housing sections having cooperable threads; an eccentric cam rotatable in said housing; means for rotating said eccentric cam; said housing forming a convenient grippable handle; a pair of angular oppositely extending brackets formed integral with one of said housing sections and having apertures therein, the ends of said brackets being slightly arcuate and non-parallel; a pair of rubber-like pads secured .to said arcuate bracket surfaces respectively, integral pad portions at the ends of each of said pads extending substantially beyond each of said brackets respectively and adapted to vibrate to create a slapping or pounding action substantially opposite to the normal vibrating means of the intermediate portion of said pads; and means for attaching saidvibrator to the hand and the like comprising aplurality of springs connected at their opposite ends to the ends of each of said pads.

3. In combination with a portable vibrating device having a grippable vibrating head including driven eccentric cam means therein and outwardly extending bracket elements .to provide for the mounting, flexible vibratory pads; a rubberlike flexible vibratory pad removably mounted on said bracket elements of greater length than breadth and having integral pad portions forming the ends of said pad and which project substantially beyond the edges of said bracket elements to permit flexing vibratory slapping movements thereof in directions opposite or difierent' to the direction of normal vibratory movement of said housing and bracket elements. i

4. A portable vibrating head adapted to be driven by a driven flexible shaft; an elongated bulb-shaped housing including a removable cap, an eccentric cam rotatable in said housing and drivable from said flexible shaft; bracket means on said housing and extending outwardly therefrom to provide for mounting of vibratory pads thereon; a plurality of rubber-like flexible pads mounted on the outer surfaces of said bracket means, and integral pad portions at the ends of said flexible pads projecting outwardly and substantially beyond said bracket means to provide for slapping and vibrating movements of said pad portions in directions opposite to or non-common to the vibratory movements of said housing.

CONRAD E. HEGSTROM. 

